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Quentin R. Nordgren
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Sun Mar 9 09:32:46 2008
A MEASURE OF
TEXTURAL PATTERNS AND STRENGTHS
Quentin R. Nordgren
- -
u
- -
a a
- -
a a
-
T
= Frequent Usage
------ = Less Frequent Usage
M I 2 3 4 5
R I 1 2 3 4
R R 1 2 3 4 5 6
S I 1 2 3 4
5 6 7
DC 1 2
Second
I
I Spacing-of-instruments Degrees
Composer
Number of Instruments - Degrees
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Beethoven 2 4 2 1
Mendelssohn 4 2 3 1 2
1
Schumann 2 1 3 1 2
Brahms 1 3 2 3 1 2
*Times Found Most Frequent
*This has reference to the number of movements
in which certain patterns a r e found most frequent.
Some movements have more than one most frequent
pattern.
FREQUENTLY USED
endelssohn 1 8 1
Composer
Register of Range - Degrees
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Beethoven 1 8 1
Mendelssohn 7 2
Schumann 1 8 1
Brahms 1 7
Times Found Most Frequent
QUENTIN R. NORDGREN
Composer ,
Spacing of Instruments - Degrees
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Beethoven 8
Mendelssohn 8
Schumann 7 2
Brahms 7 2
Times Found Most Frequent
2 6 4
Mendelssohn 1 6 3 1
1 4 6 2
Composer
Register of Gap - Degrees
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Beethoven 3 7 I
Mendelssohn 8
Schumann 1 8 1
Brahms 1 8
Composer
Doubling Concentrations - Degrees
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Beethoven 4 4 1
Mendelssohn 2 5 1 1 1
Schumam 4 2 3
Brahms 2 4 1 2
T i m e s Found Most Frequent i
Mendelssohn
QUENTIN R. NORDGREN
centrations i s found to be most frequent in every instance with Men-
delssohn and Schumam and most prominent with Beethoven and Brahms.
The average textural strength of the most frequently used pat-
terns for each of the four composers i s a s follows: Beethoven, 3.31;
Mendelssohn, 3.33; Schumann, 3.65; and Brahms, 3.50.
The average aspect strengths for each composer a r e shown in
Table 10.
Composer I
This study reveals that four of the aspects were used quite s i m i -
larly among the four composers. These aspects of texture a r e : r e g i s t e r
of range, spacing of instruments, r e g i s t e r of gap, and r e g i s t e r of
doublings. The other four aspects show greater differences.
Schumann and Brahms employ a l a r g e r number of instruments
with more frequency than do Beethoven and Mendelssohn. Somewhat
more surprising is the finding that Brahms u s e s a narrower sonority
range than the other three composers, i. e. with reference to the most
frequent patterns. Undoubtedly the impression of a wide sonority range
in the music of Brahms comes from the frequent shifting of register,
rather than an actual wide sonority range. Found in the music of
Schumann was the use of l e s s gap than in the music of the other three
composers. In other words, the chords most frequently used were
constructed more solidly than the chords of the other composers. The
types of doublings used most prominently a r e Beethoven's single-line
and octave-doublings, Mendelssohn's octave-doubling, Schumann's oc-
tave- and triad-doublings, and Brahms' third-doubling. As to the amount
of doubling employed, the composers arrange themselves in the follow-
ing o r d e r (from those using the principle of doubling most to those us-
ing it least): (1) Schumann, (2) Beethoven, (3) Brahms, and (4) Mendels-
soh.
Findings which a r e believed to be most responsible for differ-
ences heard in B r a h m s ' music a r e the following: a s compared with the
other composers studied, m o r e frequent use df large numbers of in-
struments (along with Schumann), prominent doubling of the interval of
the third, and, to a l e s s e r extent, more frequent doubling in the middle-
low register.
TEXTURAL PATTERNS AM) STRENGTHS
Characteristic differences in Beethoven's music a r e due to the
following factors: the contrasting use of both few and many instruments
(with the few being most frequent), m o r e frequent use of gaps in the
high-middle-low r e g i s t e r , prominent doublings of the single-line and
octave, l a r g e percentage of doubling, and, to a l e s s e r extent, doubling
in the middle-low register. It is believed that the greatest contributing
factor to Beethoven's "lack of muddiness" is the type of doubling used.
The sound of Schumann's music i s characteristically different
because of the following factors: v e r y frequent use of l a r g e numbers of
instruments, s m a l l e r proportion of gap ( m o r e solid construction),
prominent doubling of triads, and the l a r g e percentage of doubling.
In the works analyzed Mendelssohn was found to be c h a r a c t e r i s -
tically different because of the following factors: prominent use of a
s m a l l number of instruments, prominent use of octave-doubling, and
a relatively s m a l l percentage of doubling.
Bibliography